Shanghai economy improves fitfully as end of Covid lockdown nears

Shanghai took further gradual steps on Friday toward lifting its Covid-19 lockdown while Beijing was investigating cases where its strict curbs were affecting other medical treatments as China continues its uneven exit from restrictions.

The financial hub and the capital have been hot spots, with a harsh two-month lockdown to arrest a coronavirus spike in Shanghai and tight movement restrictions to quell a small but stubborn outbreak in Beijing.

The curbs have battered the world's second-biggest economy even as most countries have been seeking to return to something like normal.

China's economy is now staggering back to its feet, but data shows only a grinding and partial recovery, with businesses from retailers to chipmakers warning of slow sales as consumers in the country slam the brakes on spending. 

Electricity consumption by Shanghai's large industrial enterprises rose steadily in the first three weeks of May to 83% of 2021 levels, Ruan Qiantu, head of the city's branch of China's State Grid, told reporters.

The utility will work to avoid outages as demand recovers and the summer consumption peak approaches, Ruan said. "We are actively responding to the demands of enterprises."

As Shanghai, China's most populous city, aims to essentially end its lockdown from Wednesday, the authorities have been allowing more people out of their homes and more businesses to reopen over the past week. But most residents remain confined to their compounds and most shops can only do deliveries.

The district of Pudong, home to the Port of Shanghai, the city's largest airport and its main finance centre, reopened 115 bus routes on Friday. The city is slowly expanding public transport after reopening four of its 20 subway lines and more than 250 bus routes on Sunday.

More than 30 parks had reopened as of Thursday, with visitor numbers capped below 50% of their maximum capacity, the Shanghai Daily reported. By Tuesday 70 more parks will reopen.

Shanghai's latest daily Covid caseload was below 300, with no cases outside quarantined areas, as has been the case for most of the past two weeks. Beijing reported 29 daily cases, down from 45 the day before.

The capital this week has stepped up quarantines, reduced workplace attendance and cracked down on people flouting instructions. This strict approach has sometimes caused other problems.

Beijing officials are investigating incidents of delayed treatment for patients with acute diseases, and some emergency services officers have been suspended, the state-backed People's Daily said on Friday.

A farmer surnamed Song wrote on social media that his 32-year-old son had died on 11 May in Beijing after waiting for an hour with acute chest pain for an ambulance. Song said he was told that there had been confusion over whether his son could be admitted due to Covid controls at local hospitals.

"This practice... brought irreparable losses to a peasant family with only one son and caused serious negative effects and smears to the anti-epidemic effort," Song wrote on Thursday.

Cases of slow access to medical care for pregnant women and other non-Covid patients during lockdowns caused outrage earlier this year in Shanghai and Xian.

GRINDING

Profits at China's industrial firms fell the fastest in two years in April, data showed on Friday, as high raw material prices and snarled supply chains squeezed margins and disrupted factory activity.

Car sales in the world's largest auto market have slowed dramatically, gamers are buying fewer consoles and consumers are unwilling to replace their existing smartphones or laptops.

But this month has seen some improvement.

Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng is accelerating deliveries after resuming double-shift production in mid-May at its plant in the southern city Zhaoqing, chairman He Xiaopeng told analysts this week.

Tesla added a second shift at its Shanghai plant on Thursday. 

Alibaba Group cited pandemic-related risks and other uncertainties on Thursday for not issuing a forecast for its new business year. 

China's central bank said on Thursday it would promote more credit for smaller firms.